Concrete-mixing machine.



1). B. HOOVER. CONCRETE MIXING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 10, 1910.

Patented June 11-, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

26 INVENTOR BOM/ZZ 51/201161 WITNESSES ATTORNEY D. B. HOOVER. CONCRETE MIXING MACHINE; APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 10, 1910.

Patented June 11, 1912.

INVENTOR WITNESSES in" I, I a? .w/M 92 3 r W ATTORNEY 1). B HOOVER. CONCRETE MIXING MAOHINE.

- APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 0, 1910. 1,029,126, Patented June 11,1912. I I s SHEETS-SHEEN.

" llk INVETOR Dan/d B. HOG/146,7?

'ATTORNEY ATET ()ZH UNITED srarns DAVID B. HOOVER, OF ELIZABETHTO'WN, PENNSYLVANIA CONCRETE-MIXING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 11, 1912.

Application filed September 10, 1910. Serial No. 581,361.

To all whom It may concern "ic it known that l, DAVID B. Hoovnu, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of lllizahethtown, in the county 'of Lancaster and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful mprovemcnts in Concrete-Mixing Machines, whereof the following is a speciti ration, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention particularly relates to concrete mixing machines of the class wherein the mixing of the constituent,elements of amount-of accumulation. of material sulficicnt to effect the discharge of said hoppers.

Further objects of this invention are to provide spraying pipes suitably disposed to introduce water at different predetermined stages of the mixing operation, and to provide valves operatively connected to control the flow of water in the respective spraying hopper and arranged to be intermittently forced apart by the material in said hopper, when a ])1L(l0i0lllll]l0tl quantity of said mater1al,1s accumulated therein; weights carried by said jaws tending to close said gate,

and adjustable with respect thereto, to vary the amount of material accumulated. 1n said mixing hoppers necessary to effect the automatic opening of said gate; spraying pipes a I I n O u respectively arranged to direct water into the receiving hopper; and mixing hoppers; and a casing inclosing said hoppers and having openings for the convenient access to the inclosed mechanism, closed by doors hinged to said casing.

This invention further includes all of the various novel features of construction and arrangement hereinafter -more specified.

In the accompanying drawings,v Figure 1 is an elevational view, partly in section, of a convenient embodiment of this invention; Fig. 2 isa vertical longitudinal sectional View of the structure shown in Fig. 1, taken on the line 2-2 in said figure; Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional elevation showing one of the mixing hoppers,'with its gatein open position; F i". 4 is an inverted definitely plan sectional view taken on the line etl in Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a plan sectional view taken on the line 55 in Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is an inverted plan sectional View taken on the line 66 in Fig. 1; Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the gate and its supporting link connections per se; Fig. 8 is a plan View of the valve arranged to control thefiow of water to the hoppers; Fig. 9 is a side clevat-ional view of said valve; Fig. 1; is a plan sec- -'tional view taken on the line 1O I0 in Fig.

9; Fig. 11 is a central vertical sectional view taken on the line 11l1 in Fig. 8; and Fig. 12 is a diagrannnaticview showingfive positions of two of said valves coupled to controlthe flow of water to the respective hoppers in a predetermined sequence.

In said figures, the cylindrical casing 10 supports the receiving hopper 11 att-he top thereof, and the discharge hopper 12 at the bottom, provided with the chute 13 terminating exterior to said casing, and the mixing hoppers. lo and 16 are disposed in vertical alinement, preferably at uniform distances, intermediate of said receiving and discharge hoppers.

The hopper 11 is substantially conical, and its walls taper. downwardly to the re- .strietedoutlet 18, which is arranged to be closed by the slide-gate 19, mounted for reciprocation in the guides 20, and con-' nected by the link 21 withthe bell crank lever 22,-which is pivoted at 23, and pro videdwith the operating handle 24.

The discharge hopper 12, like the-receiving liopper'll, is substantially conical, and its Walls taper downwardly to the restricted outlet 25, which is arranged to be controlled by the slide-gate 26, mounted to reciprocate in guides 27, and connected by the link 2S.

to the casing by the rivets 32, and are substantially conoidal in form,.and curvedly taper downwardly to the restricted outlet 33', which is controlled by the-pivoted gate, co1n prising the complementary substantially semi-conical jaws 34 and 35. Said jaws 3st and 35 are pivoted to oscillate onv the respec tive links 36 and 37 and are supported there by; said links being pivoted for oscillation to the brackets 38, which are secured to the opposite sides of each of said mixing hop:

' pers, as best shown in Figs. 2 and I The gate aws 3% and 35 are provided with arms 4.0 and ll, which respectivel carry adjustable weightsxl2, secured in a justed 'position by set screws 44, Wl'iereby the amount of material sufiicient toeffect the required pressure to opei'i said jaws may be conveniently varied by setting said Weights inthe positions required.

It may be noted that the product of the weights, and the leverage duetoj their. dis tance relative to the center .ofoscillation must be commensurate with the quantity'o' material desired to be accumulated in the. hoppei before said material is autoinatlcally discharged. For instance, if it is desired to accumulate fifty pounds of mater al in the mining hopper before its automatic d1s-- .charge therefrom, the weights 42 are shifted to a position to maintain said gate jaws 34 and together-in closed position to prevent the escape of material from said hopper, until. the desired fifty pounds are accumulated therein, when said material forces said jaws apart in opposition to said weights, and it is spilledout upon the subjacent spreader, 45.

Each spreader is substantially conical in form, .liaving its'slanting walls slightly concaved and approximating a bell configuration, ail-Ll having its apex extending toward the super j acenthopper, in substantially con centric relation with its outlet. Each of Said spreader-s 4.5 is supported by the in" .vertcd v -shaped brackets a6 secured to the Wallsof the casing 10, in such position that .its bottom ed e extends into proximity to the top edge oi'the subjacent hopper; so that as the material to be mixed is dropped upon wallsof-said spreader laterally, in all directions against the upper region of the walls of-jtheHsubjacent hopper, a'nd 1s collected therein until sufficient. material is. accumu- =lated to effect the automatic opening of its controlling gate. A spreader 45 is superim- I respective links 36 and 37, and are pivoted tooscillate on pivots 50 and 51 at the lower ends of saidlinks, so that, as maybe observed, said jaws are capable of swinging apart while their upper" peripheries remain in contact with, and slide upon, the exterion surface of the mixing hopper. ater is supplied to the hoppers 11. 15" and 16 through the respective spraying pipes 53, 54 and 55, which have suitable perforati'ons for directing jets of waterinto the material to be mixed, and which are con nectd by their respective branches 57, 5S Enid 59 withi, the water supply pipe 60, lead- 11gwater' 'from any suitable source of 5 supply. I

The supply pipe 60 is provided with valves 62 and 63, which are arranged to control the supply of water to the branches 57 58 and 59, and their respective spraying pipes 53, 54 and 55, which are connected by the rod 61, to be contemporaneously ac mated by the movement of the-valve lever 64 to successively admit water into the respective spraying pipes. 53, 5t and 55pm a Predetermined sequence.

The valves 62 and 63 are similar -in'eonstruction, and consequently the details of 4 I the former only are illustrated in Figs. S to-ll, inclusive. As shown in said figures, oe the valve casing can provided with an inlet 66 and an outlet 67, leading to thespi'aying pipe 53,.and controlled by the gate 68. and, I

provided to permit the convenient the disk 71, to admit water to the spraying I pipe .53; the second positionf-showsfisaid 'valves set to close the the disk 71 by said casing.

the outlet 70 connected with the valve 63, as shown 111 Fig. l, andcontrolledby the 1 5i disk? 1, carried by the gate 68, and "haying, the aperture 72 arranged to register'withthe 1 outlet 70 valve .63.

The casing 10 forms-a cylindrical"closure; 1 10 l' or the hoppers, and prevents the accidental spill-ingor splashing of the material as'it gifavitatesfrom onc hopper to the other in 5,

its descent through the machine. casing is conveniently provided with opposed 1'15 doors 7 3, which are. arranged tosWin on the I hinges 74 and which are respective y pro-f vided with'the handles75,said doorsbeiiigadjust ment or cleaning of the mechanism Referring now to .the coupled valves? to" admit Water to the siibj'accnt I d sed .12

and 63, diagrammatically illustrated j 12, the first position shows the} Valves SiZtO open the gate 68 of the valvef52, and to close gate '68", 'and to "open v of the valve 62, and-toopeu the] t gate 76 and close the disk77-of;

ranges, 13o

to admit water to the spraying pipe 5.4; the rangement herein set forth, as it is obvious third position shows the valves set to close the gate (38, and to open the disk Tl otthe valve 62, and to close the gate 7t and to open the disk 77 of the valve 63, to admit water to the spraying pipe the fourth position shows a condition similar to the'tliird position; and the fifth position shows the gate 68 and the disk 71 in a position to close both 1 of the outlets. (S7 and 70, and thereby prevent water entering any of the spraying pipes 53, 5st and it may be observed from the foregoing de-' scription of the diagrammatic view shown in Fig. 12, that the valves are so constructed and related that the admission of water to any one of the spraying pipes effects a term'ination ofsupply of water to the. other spraying pipes. v

The operation of the mixing device is Layers of cement 80, sand 81 and stone 82, shown in. Fig. *2, are introduced into the receiving hopper 11, and

.when the desired amount. is collected,- the operator shifts the slide valve 19 by the movement of the lever 22, andpermits the unmixed material to escape t-l' rough the outlet 1S and to fall upon the spreader 45, which is disposed beneath said receiving hopper.

The material thus dropped from the. hopper ll is thrown outwardly by the subjacent spreader against the walls of the mixing hopper" 15, and is collected therein; the

amount of material accumulated in said hop per being determined by the relation of the weights 42 to the gate Jaws 34 and 35.

VVh'en, however, tne accumulated material reaches the desired weight to overcome saidweights L2, the opposed laws 31- and 35 are spread apart. by said material, and it is precipitated upon the subjacent spreader 45, superjacent to the mixing hopper l6, and is again thrown. outwardly by said sprrader against the walls ot the mixing hopper 'lti.

The operation o l the hopper 16 is the same as the "siiiperjata-rnt hopper 15. so that when the accumulated material in the uopper 1(3 "utlicien! to open its gate, said material is precipitated upon its suhjacrnt spreader h), which superunposcd uponthe dim-barge hopper 12, where it is collected and. dis-- charged as desired.

During the mixing operation, water is ad- .mittedinlo'the spraying pipes of, the respective hoppers in. the manner asabove dcsrrihcd, and the particles of ditl'crcnt materials are thus caus d to'cohcrc to form the pasty mixture drsired.

By the movement of the slide valve 2c, the mixed mateiial is permitted to be discharged thcmfroni into the chute l3 and delivered to a vehicle or any convenient receptacle provided tor the purpose. i

It is not desiret'l to limit this invention to the precise details of construction and ar- I l i i l that various modifications may be made therein without departing from the esscn- 'tial features of the invention as donned m with interposing mixing hoppers, each havin; an inlet and an outlet, of a surroumling casing operative to support said hoppers, a

gate suspended by links within said casing dependent from each 'of Saidlloppers automatic: lly actuated to control said outlet. and comprising opposed complementary jaws pivoted to said hoppers and cooperative with tl e walls thereof to govern its rocking movement, andyielding means tending to maintain said jaws in. closed position to rctain material in said hoppers, said material being effective to open saidjaws in opposition-to the closing means, by the accumuhv tion of a predetermined weight of said material in said hopper.

2. In a concrete mixer, the combination with a plurality of interposing hoppers having tapering walls and each provided with an inlet and: an outlet, of a surrounding casing operative to support said hoppers,

means to control each of said outlets comprising complementary aws pivoted to-said hopper by relatively movable links dependent therefrom within said casing, and means tending to maintain said jaws closed, to reta-in material in said hopper, said jaws being automatically opened by the weight.- of material when a predetermined acctunulation of said material is collected in said hopper,

the weight of said material tending to friction-ally engage said jaws. with said hopper.

3. In a concrete mixer, the combination with a. plurality of interposing hoppers having-tapered walls, and each provided with 'an inlet and an outlet, of a, cylindrical sur rounding casing operative to support said hoppers, relatively movable links pivotally attached to said hoppers within said casing and forn'iing pivots, conical gates comprising relatively movable complc-mentary jaws arranged .to rock on said pivots, forming closures For said outlets operative to retain material in said hoppers, and weights mounted on said jaws tending tomaintain them in closed position, said gates beingar ranged to be automatically opened in opposition to said weights, by the pressure of a predetermined accumulation of material in said hoppers.

4. In a concrete mixer, the combination with a plurality of inter-posing hoppers, each having an inlet and an outlet, of a surrounding cylii'idrical casingopcrative to support said hoppers in spaced vertical relal ion, relatively movable links within said casing. gates for said hoppers forming receptacles with said hoppers to retain material when use in position to close said outlets, and compris- 'ing substantially semiconioal complementary jaws niovably pivoted on said lin'lis to swing apart and to rock on said links,' 'and means tending to ii'iai-ntain s aid gates closed, said material 7 being effective to automat cally open said gates when a predetermined accumulation is collected in said hoppers. 1

5. A concrete mixer comprising a plural,

itygof interposing hoppers of'substantially the form of a conoidal frustum, and eacl provided with aninlet and an outlet, a cylindrical surroundingcasing operative to maintain saidhoppers in spaced vertical relation,

a gate for each of said outlets having hollow semi-conical complementary jaws, separately pivoted to links Within said casing dependent from said hoppers and arranged to swing apart, weights carried by said jaws normally tending -to maintain said gate closed toretain material insaidhopper, and

means including said material to open said gate in opposition tosaid weights bya predetermined accumulation of said material collected lllSilld hopper, the rocking movement beiiiggoverned by the walls of said hopper, i I

-6. Ip a concrete mixer, the combination 4 with a pluralityof interposing hoppers, each provided with an inlet and an outlet, ot a cylindrical surrounding casing operative to support said hoppers in spaced vertical rela tion, gate for each of said outletshaving inclined walls-arranged to control said outlets, and'comprising relatively movable complementary portions, each separately pivoted to links pivoted to said hopper within said casing, and weights carried by said compleiiieiitary portions tending to maintain said:

gate closed to form a receptacle to retain said material ins-aid hopper, said gate being arranged to be opened automatically by a predetermined accun'iulation. of material collected in said hopper, and to be'pressed into frictional engagement with the wall of said hopper by said accumulated material.

7. la a COIlCl'QtOll'llXll'ig machine, the comb'iiiation with aplurality of 1i1tei 'ios1ng hoppershavingdownwardly curved -converging walls, of conical gates operative to intermittently discharge the contents of each of'saiddioppers automatically, said gates being ,in'f-rictional engagement with the sides of said "hoppers, and downwardly curved flaring sp'readersdisposed subjacent to said'hoppers.-- 8. Ina. concrete mixing machine, the combination with a plurality of interposing mixing-hoppers, of. a surrounding casing operativefip supportsaid hoppers, a curved-1y flaring spreader interposed between said hoppers, relatively movable links comprising pivot-s dependent from said hoppers \vitliiii,.said :casing, and automatically actuated gates; mounted to rock upon said -tcrial into said mixing hoppers, and havcorresponding to the passage of thematicrial through said hoppers, said means being operative to cut otf the flow of'water into one of said hoppers simultaneously with its admission into another of said hoppers.

10. A concrete mixing machine, comprisinga plurality of interpos'ing' relatively stationary mixing hoppers, and an inlet hop- .pe arranged to pour unmixed material into said mixing hoppers, automatic means arranged to control-the discharge of material intei'iiiittently from the respective mixing hoppers, a spraying pipe local to each of the respective hoppers, separate valves operative r to admit a flow of water into one of said spraying pipes and to contemporaneously sl ut ofi' the flow of water in aiiother of said pipes, in accordance'with the movement of imiterial from one hopper to another, and

act uatin means operative to simultaneously control both of said valves from one station.

ll. A concrete mixing machine, coniprising a plurality of mixing lio'ppersandan' inlethopper arrangedto feed unmixed maing a spraying pipe arranged to direct jets: of water into the respectivehoppers', a supply pipe connected with said spraying pipes, valves disposed iii-said supply pipe opera,- tire t5 selectively supply Waterto said hoppcrs, each valve having asingl e inlet and a plurality of outlets, and means connected to conteuiporaiieously control all of said valves iroin' one station, one of sa d valves being operative to control the Water supplied to the top'ho ipcr and to the other valve, said other valvebeingdiperative. to supply water to the subjacei t' hoppers respectively, said valves'being, connected to direct water into each of said'lioppers selectively, and to contemporaneously shut off the water from the other hoppers in so through saidhoppers. 1.2. In a concrete mixing'machine, the

, combination witli'a plurality of interposing mixing l'ioppers having downwardly curved converging walls, of a fGGCllIlgllOP- per operative to feed unmixed material to said mixing hoppers, conical gates operaqucnce with the passa ge lof the material,

13. In a concrete mixing machine, thecombination with a plurality of interposing mixing hoppers having downwardly curved converging walls, of a feeding hop per operative to feed unmixed material to said mixing hoppers, a surrounding casing operative to support said hoppers, conical gates operative to intermittently discharge the contents of each of said hoppers automatically, said gates being in frictional engagement with the sides of said hoppers, and upwardly curved flaring Spreaders disposed subjacent to said hoppers.

14. In a concrete mixing machine, the combination with a plurality of conoidal mixing hoppers, of a spreader interposed between said mixing hoppers, automatically actuated gates arranged to be intermittently opened by thematerial accumulated in the respective hoppers to dischaige said material upon the subjacent spreaders, and means suspendingsaidgates and compris ing relatively movable axes upon which said gates may rock.

15. In a concrete mixing machine, the combination with a plurality of conoidal mixing hoppers, of. a spreader interposed between said mixing hoppers, automatically actuated gates arranged to be intermittently opened by the material accumulated. in the respective hoppers to discharge said material upon the sub acent spreader, and links DAVID B. HOOVER.

Witnesses G. L. HOLDEN, E. A. WALDROOP.

suspending said gates and comprising rela- 

